Efforts have been made to increase the comfort, functionality and usefulness of automotive vehicles of all types. In one respect, automotive vehicles have been outfitted with cup holders to provide the driver and front seat passengers with a place to hold cans, cups and other types of receptacles. The cup holders have taken various forms such as recessed areas provided in the dashboard or center console and similarly located slidable trays provided with cup receiving apertures. Other forms of cup holders have involved the use of cup receiving rings.
Many of the known types of cup holders are designed to be moved from an extended position to a stored position so that the cup holder can be moved out of the way when not in use. While these types of cup holders are able to perform their intended function of holding receptacles, they suffer from various drawbacks and disadvantages.
In one respect, the cup holders are typically designed to accommodate at least two cans, cups or the like. In the past, this has meant that the cup holders are rather large in size because of the space needed to house the cup holder when it is moved to the stored position. Unfortunately, the space available in vehicles for accommodating cup holders is oftentimes limited and so constraints may exist with respect to where the cup holders can be located.
In the case of ring type cup holders, it has been found that the rings are not particularly well suited to withstanding the application of force (e.g., if an individual inadvertently presses down on the rings while trying to place a can in the ring). Thus, these types of holders are susceptible of being broken. This is due at least in part to the construction of the ring type cup holder as well as the material from which the cup holder is made. Further, the rings are susceptible of becoming misaligned.